Last stop in Ukraine for disabled buses from Luton airport

The Ukrainian Armed Forces have just received three purple bandy buses. Photo: Go-Ahead/SHAP

Three flexible buses from London Luton Airport The buses have arrived on the battlefield in Ukraine to be used in the country's war effort.

The vehicles, which still have the untouched paint of Luton Airport, in mainly used to provide rest areas for besieged troops, as well as to transport supplies and cargo. soldiers.

According to local media reports, two buses are equipped with toilets and showers, and the other is planned to be turned into a traveling exhibition showing the destruction caused by the Russian invasion.

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Bus operator Go-Ahead donated the cars through the Swindon Humanitarian Aid Partnership (SHAP) after they went out of service in March when the airport launched a new driverless shuttle service to transport passengers between its terminals and nearby Luton Parkway rail station.

“These cars have worked for years, transporting vacationers and suitcases. They have now been retired from service at the airport, and we are glad that they can be found usefully — as a small contribution to the Ukrainian military effort, ”said a GoAhead representative.

The buses were flown from Swindon to Calais via Dover by SHAP volunteers and then handed over to the Ukrainians for the long journey across Europe.

Targeted by Russia

Mike Bowden, SHAP chairman, said the original intention was to repaint the buses white and tagged their roofs with red crosses. But the volunteers were persuaded not to do so for fear that the vehicles could become a target for Moscow forces.

“We were specifically asked not to repaint them so that from the air they look as close as possible to public buses and not stand out,” Mr. Bowden said. “This is because Russian forces are deliberately attacking hospitals and ambulance workers.”

In May, SHAP converted a bus donated by one of the local Go-Ahead bus companies into a mobile medical team equipped with beds, stretchers, heart monitors , plumbing and electricity.

The latest donations come after Ukraine announced new laws requiring women with a medical or pharmaceutical degree to register for military service from the beginning of next month.

They will be classified as conscripts. This means they will not be allowed to leave the country, said Fedor Venislavsky, President Volodymyr Zelensky's representative to the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's parliament.

Calling women

The move marks the first time Ukraine has mobilized women for its war. an effort. Kiev does not call women to combat positions, although they can volunteer to fight.

About 60,000 women have joined the Ukrainian armed forces in combat and non-combat positions since Russia launched its invasion last year. About 10,000 people are reportedly serving on the front lines.

More than 100 Ukrainian female soldiers have been killed since the start of Moscow's offensive.

Female soldiers have previously reported experiencing supply problems from -for military uniforms and equipment intended for men, as well as for the lack of adequate medical training of physicians in the treatment of women injured in battle.